Review: "Sneakers: The Complete Limited Editions Guide" by U-Dox

Sneakers: The Complete Limited Editions Guide

The average sneaker enthusiast has one or two sneaker books or magazines collecting dust at home that they flipped through once then put away, probably somewhere at eye-level so that future house guests would see it and give props. There are quite a few great ones that we would recommend everyone pick up to read, frequently (see here and here), and U-Dox will soon drop another title that belongs on that list.

Sneakers: The Complete Limited Editions Guide is a follow-up to their popular Sneakers: The Complete Collector's Guide, but unlike most sequels, this one is very necessary. Written and designed by U-Dox and published by Thames & Hudson, the hardcover book is manageable 256 pages of pure sneaker porn and a great reflection on the past decade in footwear. Most of the photography is courtesy of U-Dox's Phil Aylen, save for a few brand collaboration photos and store interior shots. The book is filled with hundreds of photos that show all the important angles and details of the shoes being discussed, but it's still a good-sized book (about 6"x9"), which makes reading it on the go a lot easier. Each page has the official model name as a heading, a fun subheading about the pair like "Classic American Dream" or "Bodegas To Die For," a paragraph or two about the history of the pair, and a very useful "Shoe Data" column that provides the Edition, Pack, Year Released, Original Purpose, Technology, and Extras. The U-Dox team definitely put in work on the research side of things and it paid off big time. Even the most sneaker-obsessed among us can and will learn a lot by picking up this book.

As far as the layout goes, we can't imagine an easier reading experience. The sneakers are organized by brands in the following order: Adidas, Asics, Converse, New Balance, Nike, Air Jordan, Puma, Reebok, and Vans. Next is a section entitled "And Not Forgetting," which features other important shoes from BAPE, PRO-Keds, Le Coq Sportif, and Pony. The final major section of the book is dedicated to "Collaborators" and features blurbs about Supreme, HTM, Ronnie Fieg, Mita Sneakers, Patta, CLOT, Mr. Cartoon, Crooked Tongues, and various other individuals and companies that have helped produce highly coveted pairs and well-executed pairs. If the Table of Contents isn't enough for you, the page numbers are color-coordinated to match the sections. Easy.

The sneakers chosen to fill the pages of Sneakers: The Complete Limited Editions Guide will be criticized by those who don't understand how books work. The Internet is a gift and a curse in that there is no cap on the amount of information we have access to. As with their first book, U-Dox addresses the issue of space and the selection process in the book's Introduction, stating that "it would have been impossible to include here every limited edition release since 2005...Our goal had to be to select sneakers that had a global impact- whether they were the most desirable, or the most exclusive." So if you pick this book up and your first reaction is that there aren't enough Jordan retros and too many KITH releases, maybe you should just go back to the forum you crawled out of.

Look for Sneakers: The Complete Limited Editions Guide to hit your local bookstore and Amazon on April 8. In the meantime, click through here to check out a video with the creators and Kish Kash as talk limited kicks with the likes of Tinie Tempah, DJMK, Lily Mercer of Rinse FM, Nick Bam, Charlie Dark, and Eliza Doolittle.